Seat replacement in vehicles is generally performed for the purpose of upgrading original seating for comfort or quality or for reconfiguring the placement of seats. In addition, seat replacement is performed to increase the capacity of seating in vehicles such as commuter vans. It may also be done to provide for a specific use of a van, sport utility vehicle, bus or mini-van or for a racing conversion. The most common process for mounting replacement seats which are not original equipment in vans is to mount the seats through the floor of the vehicle. This typically requires a customized procedure that does not engage any of the seat mounting structures from the OEM seating. A primary challenge is to mount the replacement seats with sufficient strength and durability for safety and long term use. The replacement seats (non-OEM or after-market) are a complete customization with little or no re-use of the original equipment. The design and installation of replacement seats is often done in a “shop” environment with little or no quality or qualified engineering attention. In exemplary methods, mounting replacement seats requires drilling bolt holes through the van floor, although existing holes may be used, and strengthening members attached above the floor and mounting brackets below the floor to provide the intended strength and rigidity. This results in high cost and substantial risk such as dislodgment of the new seat in any collision or other traumatic event or even in rough use.
This is contrasted to the quality design and production automotive engineering and testing that original seating design undergoes including testing by crash tests to ensure reliability for passenger safety.